An Armagh refrigeration company has won a prestigious national award for its energy-saving refrigeration solution at a meat processing plant. Shilliday Refrigeration picked up the prize for ‘Industrial and Commercial Project of the Year’ at the RAC Cooling Industry Awards, which cover the refrigeration and air conditioning industry.
Entries from nearly every major name in refrigeration and air conditioning were judged, and with the focus very much on energy-efficient solutions, Shilliday’s simple, but cost-effective, idea for a new centralized refrigeration system at Loughgall company Hewitt Meats was the one which came out top in its category.
Providing a more straightforward answer to the customer’s needs, the new centralised refrigeration system resulted in a 19% drop in Hewitt’s energy bill over the period of a year, and a carbon footprint reduction estimated to be at least 80 tonnes a year.
“While we commend the use of natural refrigerants for most food processing facilities, it was not a viable option at Hewitt’s due to the amount of existing equipment on site which we were able to incorporate into the new design,” says Shilliday’s technical director, Jason Shilliday. “We were able to provide a bespoke solution that wasn’t overly complicated but that helped the client reduce his energy bill. We showed that it isn’t just the larger organizations that can benefit from green thinking, relatively small businesses can too.”
One of the leading refrigeration and air-conditioning contractors in Northern Ireland, Shilliday Refrigeration is a family-run business, established in 1975 by brothers Alexander and Norman Shilliday.
CAPTION:
Jason Shilliday, technical director of Shilliday Refrigeration (centre) celebrates winning the RAC Cooling Industry Award for ‘Industrial and Commercial Project of the Year’ with James Hewitt, Hewitt Meats (left) and project consultant, Declan Fitzmaurice, PED Consultants (right).